Spot
29er frame
29er Hardtail

Product Description

This will be our second season of building 29er single speed frames and they are growing in popularity every day.

The 29er frames use the same tubing as the standard single speed frame that we build, and have the same available options. There are 3 stock sizes available (see the table below, plus our frame geometry page) and our 6 stock colors to choose from, as well as available custom colors and sizes, of course!

User Reviews

Strengths: Paint scheme is great, rides well. This is a climbing machine! Very comfortable lax geometry that you can ride all day. Good for enduro racing (my forte) if not super technical.

Weaknesses: Rear brakes have to be removed to remove rear wheel (the tabs are too far back) so the caliper is past the top of the rotor).

Holes in all seat and chain stays let in water and rusty water comes out: those should have been sealed!

Paint chips easily.

Can only hold one water bottle.
removed the belt drive (bling!) since it was too costly to change gearing... went to chain drive.

Spot Brand components are junk, so be ready to replace the wheels and cranks (my crank came apart and BOTH of my hubs seized)

Bottom Line:

I got this from the original owner, with a 100mm fork. I'm 6'1" and felt the front end was too high. After flipping the 10* stem down, i put on a 80mm fork. That helped a ton, but the front end still feels a bit too tall, such that when standing to pedal I don't have straight arms.

The bike is an uphill machine. It handles very well, very solid and very responsive.

But downhill is a different story- the rider is too far forward, (80mm stem & lay back post too!), and it wants to flip you up and over. I've pushed myself as far back as possible, and put the 100mm fork & 2" riser bars back on without any success in shifting the weight back. The rear tire is very light on the ground making for quick turns and hops, which is very nice at times! Other times it is scary.

Bottom line: a fine solid bike, but front 'heavy' that is no fun in the downhill.

Strengths: This is for the Ti Longboard frame. Sharp handling, climbs & descends well. Very stiff for climbing but buttery on descents...best of both worlds. Spot nailed the geometry.

With the belt drive, be prepared to answer lots of questions! But it saves at least 1 pound, and is freakish quiet.

Weaknesses: Belt drive is touchy to set up, but once you do, you don't touch it for a long time.

Bottom Line:

Ultimate go anywhere, ride anything singlespeed. I take this to Winter Park and Keystone to do the chairlift downhill runs and pass DH guys, but can also ride up the most insane technical climbs...only thing stopping me is my fitness.

I bought this bike after looking at a lot of other options for singlespeeds. I was intrigued by the belt drive and sold on the Spot geometry.

I had a few "teething" issues that the guys at Spot handled very professionally and quickly. I could not get the rear wheel to stay aligned with the Spot Rocket tensioners and QR that came with the bike. This caused the belt to become mis-aligned and rub or skip. Spot remedied this by replacing the stock QR axle with a bolt-on axle and I replaced the Spot Rocket tensioners with Redline and the problem has been fixed. I also had a belt snap which was likely due to the belt being compromised at some point but again the guys at Spot / CDS replaced it no questions asked.

After working through the issues mentioned, I've had no problems and I thoroughly enjoy the bike! It's quiet, responsive and handles very well. You do tend to sit more upright than with a standard XC setup, but the geometry works for climbing and descending very well. The belt drive is so smooth you feel like you have a direct connect to the rear wheel and power transfer is instantaneous.

My bike came with the Manitou 29er fork and TPC damping. I swapped out the TPC damper for 85 bucks and put in the Absolute damper as a lockout is a must on 29er SS.

My bike as configured with XT SPD pedals weight 25.8 lbs which is respectable for a bike in this price range. If I were to change anything else, it would be swapping out the WTB wheelset for a set of Crossmax 29ers or Stans as I could shave nearly a pound off the build. It would be relatively easy to shave another .5 to 3/4 lb by swapping out the seatpost, stem and bar but I see no reason at this point.

Bottom line. 5 flamming chilis for this bike and the support from Spot / CDS!

Weaknesses: dropouts and mounting system are challenging to get right and don't often stay in the correct position.

Bottom Line:

This is a really nice steel frame. The geometry is quite different than other 29ers I've ridden. It has a much more slack head tube angle with makes it great for riding over stuff and handling downhills well. Like most steel bikes, it is very smooth for a hardtail. Unlike most steel bikes (especially 29ers), it doesn't seem to flexy. The paint isn't too thick, but looks nice.

Strengths: Geometry is great, super short chain-stays make for a really fun ride. Bike descends like a dream and is very, very stable at high speeds. Great BB clearance and plenty of stand-over.

Weaknesses: Somehow I got the short straw and got a sub-par paint job from Spectrum, which rarely happens. Welds aren't quite as clean as I would expect of a frame in this price range.

Bottom Line:

This bike is really fun to ride and has a great feel. Climbs well and descends even better. The steel frame really soaks up the bumps and is pretty light weight. The boys and girls at Spot delivered my frame much faster than I expected. Only drawback is the so-so paint job which is not the norm for bikes painted at Spectrum.

If you live in the Colorado Springs area...buy a bike from Tim at Balanced Rock Bike & Ski...he's a super cool guy!

I was really stoked on the belt drive and after of plenty of time in the saddle I still am. It took some time tweaking the rear wheel alignment to get the belt not to ride to one side or the other but once you get it dialed its great, no oil, no noise and smooth.

The frame geometry is good and the bike climbs well.

On the down side, I have had my bike (or my wife's Longboard) in the shop 4 weekends in a row. It seems every Spot component has either needed to be replaced or fixed. At a price tag of $1800 I am a bit disappointed by my Spot experince. Thankfully the guys at the shop have been great and more then helpful.

In the end, Spot makes a nice frame and the belt drive is great, however, if I got one again I would by the frame and belt drive and do a custom build.

This bike took about 8 months in the making. With the custom paint and waiting on all the sweet stuff to come available. It was worth the wait!

The minute I threw my leg over this bike I was blown away at the fact that it did not feel like I was on a 29er. The Custom tube set and geometry really work with this bike. I was afraid that the top tube was going to be a little short coming off of my Soulcraft but it's no problem what so ever. The bike is quick and agile just the way you want it.

The belt drive is just awesome. Quiet, smooth and direct power under your feet. The new improved Belt design, different from the inter bike design works flawlessly. The guys at Golden Bike Shop knew exactly how to line the drive line up perfectly.

This bike is unbelievable fun to ride. I am definitely hooked on the 29er SS Belt Drive.

Bike Setup: 29er Spot SS Belt Drive Frame. American Made in Golden, Colorado with a custom Spectrum Powderworks Liquid paint design. (Has to be seen to be believed) The welds on this bike are simply outstanding.

Submitted by
David Hohensee
a Cross Country Rider
from Golden, CO, USA

Date Reviewed: October 15, 2007

Strengths: Best handling hardtail I have every owed/ridden! Bought for the novel belt drive system, but have fallen in love with the way this bike (frame) rides. The mix of different steel in specific tubes really works (at least for me).

Weaknesses: Cost is prohibitive (but worth it in my opinion); I'd like a clear coat over the finish and decals; geometry could be discriminatory (although I LOVE it).

Bottom Line:

This is my first SS, or 29er and although I'm a little out-of-shape and new to the SS tactics, I love the handling of this bike. After some demo rides, I'm becoming a 29er convert! Seems like the companies I've tried (Spot, Niner) have the geometry dialed and there's little compromise. Being a big guy, it is a bit harder to climb, but the descents are incredible... even on a hardtail.

My bike was one of the demo bikes from Interbike, so it has the "key-hole" slot in the dropout for the Polychain belt drive. That said, I got the bike from a local bike shop with a traditional chain-drive. I'm supposed to get the belt-drive in December, so I'll amend my review then. That should be a good test since I'm a clydesdale in Colorado (loads of climbing). That seemed to be the one combination that caused slipping at Interbike. I'm confident that it will be fine-tuned by December.

Regardless of the belt drive, I love this bike! The finish is beautiful, although I'm a little concerned since there appears to be no clear coat over the decals. The geometry is "spot" on and it handles incredibly. I'm running Kenda Small Block 8's on it and I've noticed that those tires don't hook up like I'd like, but the bike is SO predictable when the rear end is going to break free that it's almost fun to slide! The cockpit is comfortable and places me in the perfect position to rail turns (love the 29er tires for their contact). I'm really pumped to spend more time on this bike! As mentioned earlier, I'll revise my review after a couple of months in the saddle and some time stomping the belt drive.

Strengths: Love this bike. Super clean look and climbs better than I can keep up with it. The 29er thing on a SS really comes together.

Weaknesses: I wish I was more worthy of this ride.

Bottom Line:

Loving every bit of it. Just finished slogging through a sloppy mess of snow and mud jeep roads and the Spot knocked it out with distinction. I'm around the 200lb mark and I can't notice any flex while climbing. Descending is tight and responsive, but I'm still working out cornering on 29's. All that from a local Colorado company, can't beat it.

Strengths: My Spot frame is withg out a doubt the sweetest riding frame I have evr owned. It handles flawlessly. The frame is very compliant, but is also stiff enough on take off. I would reckomend this frame over any other out there.

Weaknesses: Short Toptube, Seatstays are small and biggest tire I can fit is a 2.1,

Bottom Line:

Nice bike. Other than the short top tube the rest is great. I would like to put wider tires on it but the Kendas are fast rollers, great for racing. The bike is convertable thanks to the Santa Cruz drop-outs that Michael recommended. Now I can ride either geared or singlespeed. As for the top tube, I sit a bit more straighter but I added a offset seatpost and the bike is a bit more racy. Would I buy another? There are too many alternatives out there and the top tube does make a difference. I am more prone to endo on the bike than on my longer tt Gry Fisher Rig. But, I am still happy with the Spot.

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